In the South Asia region, flash floods account for a significant portion of the casualties and property damages that result from flooding. Given that flash floods can occur at any time or place, with potentially disastrous results, there is an urgent need to prioritize efforts that aim to improve early warnings capabilities.

Every year, heavy rains cause floods across Niger. Since June, over 56 people have lost their lives with many more affected according to the Civil Protection Directorate at the Ministry in charge of Interior Affairs and Public Security. For these events, in particular for flash floods, national and local authorities were unprepared and were not able to alert the population at risk and to activate response plans.

Bangladesh is one of the most flood-prone countries in the world due to its unique geographical location, topography and exposure to tropical cyclones. With 50% of the land less than 8 meters above sea level, and a coastline of some 600 km, coastal flooding is a common problem, as witnessed once again in 2017. However, loss of life in the densely populated South Asian nation has been greatly reduced by disaster risk reduction measures and early warning systems.

Weather prediction has achieved immense progress, driven by research and increasingly sophisticated telecommunication, information technology and observational infrastructure. Predictive skill now extends in some cases beyond 10 days, with an increasing capability to give early warning of severe weather events many days ahead.

Natural hazards involving weather, climate and water are a major source of death, injury and physical destruction. Over the past decade (2005-2014), 3 253 hydrometeorological hazards were reported around the world, resulting in 283 035 deaths and economic losses amounting to US$ 983 million.

Factoring weather and climate information into agricultural decision-making has optimized agricultural production in many countries. However, in developing countries – where most smallholder farms are rain-fed – access to weather and climate information to guide decision-making is limited. Governments should view such information, crucial to farmers, as a means of alleviating poverty and hunger.